Title: Test Drive 5
    Platform: Playstation
    Genre: Racing
    Publisher: Accolade
    # Of Players: 1-2
    Dual Shock/Analog Compatible: Yes

Ever since its debut in 1995, the Playstation has been known for its racing games. Games like Ridge Racer, Wipeout, and Gran Turismo have been huge hits with gamers everywhere. Racing games are a proven commodity and, when done well, can provide endless hours of game playing enjoyment. However, being that there are so many racing games available for the Playstation any racing game released has to be very, very good in order to stand out. Accolade obviously knew that the competition was very stiff because Test Drive 5 is the best racing game I've ever laid my hands on.

From the moment Gran Turismo was released last year the bar was set as far as Playstation racing games go. Any game released would have to top the Sony's new racing masterpiece. I was one of those who bought Gran Turismo and I have to confess I didn't really think it could be topped. Upon playing Test Drive 5 I realized how wrong I was. Test Drive 5's sheer versatility is what makes it the great game that it is. Any good racing game has to have plenty of tracks and Test Drive 5 delivers in this respect with 18 different ones. What I love about the tracks in Test Drive 5 is their sheer diversity. You can race in Moscow, Tokyo, Kyoto, Edinburgh, Sydney, Honolulu, and San Francisco among other places. I also really like the split course feature. At many different points on each course you'll find that the course forks. You select which fork you want to take. There are also plenty of cars to choose from, thirty-six in total. You'll find cars from Nissan, Ford, Chevrolet, Jaguar, and Aston Martin among others.

There are two main racing modes in Test Drive 5. The first, Quick Race, has you choose any available track, any available car, and then race. The second, Full Race, is made up of five different modes. There's Single Race, Time Trials, Cup Race, Drag Race, Cop Chase, and Two Player. In the beginning only a few tracks are available, and Single Race mode you can play any of the tracks and cars you have available. In Time Trial mode you simply race against the clock with traffic to see how fast you can complete the course you're racing on. The Cup Race mode is made up of six different cups, each harder than the last. Winning the first two cups in easy mode will unlock a few things, winning the next two cups in normal mode will unlock even more stuff, and winning the last two cups in hard mode will leave everything unlocked. The Drag Race mode is fairly self-explanatory so I won't go over that. Next up is the Cop Chase Mode, which is probably my favorite. You select one of the available cop cars and try to pull over armed robbers, software pirates (kind of hokey, huh?), and speeders. To get them to pull over you have to nudge the front end of their cars and try to get them to spin out. The more cars you pull over, and tickets you hand out, the higher your score. While I really liked this mode, I didn't like the fact that getting the crooks to spin out was nearly impossible. I did everything I possibly could to cause the crooks to spin out and I was rarely successful. The final mode, Two Player, is also self-explanatory so I don't really need to go over it. Test Drive 5 also has a plethora of options as you might expect. You can turn traffic on or off, turn cops on or off, set the difficulty, and toggle between Simulation and Arcade style of play among other things.

The graphics in Test Drive 5 are very well done and have a very polished look. The only problem I found with the graphics was that there was an excessive amount of clipping. Clipping, for those of you unfamiliar with the term, is when little lines sporadically pop up on the screen. It's very similar to those lines you'll sometimes see on the screen in a movie theater before the movie actually starts. The clipping in Test Drive 5 isn't as severe as that, but it's definitely noticeable. Test Drive 5's soundtrack features the music of Fear Factory, Gravity Kills, Junkie XL, KMFDM, and Pitchshifter. It's a very fast and heavy soundtrack, and while suiting the game well, it got on my nerves after a while and I found myself muting my television.

Aside from those few minor complaints Test Drive 5 delivers racing fun in a big way. It has great graphics, lots of tracks, lots of cars, and plenty of variety. It controls well and will definitely please any racing game enthusiast. If you need a good racing game for your Playstation forget all the other racing games and buy yourself a copy of Test Drive 5.

    Title: Test Drive Off-Road 2
    Platform: Playstation
    Genre: Off-Road Racing
    Publisher: Accolade
    # Of Players: 1
    Dual Shock/Analog Compatible: Yes

Off-road racing games have been a video game staple for quite a number of years now. There haven't been a ton of off-road racing games, and most of the ones out there are fairly mediocre. The game that really started the off-road racing genre, and is still a great game to this day, is Sega's Sega Rally. Sega Rally hit arcades in Japan and the US about four years ago, and it was an instant hit because of it had great graphics, great tracks, and most importantly, it was a blast to play. Three years ago Sony released the now classic Rally Cross for the Playstation, and it set the standard for console off-road titles. With Test Drive Off-Road 2 Accolade has what can arguably be called the best off-road title available for the Playstation.

When Rally Cross hit store shelves everywhere in 96, I asked a friend of mine to get it for me as a birthday present. He came through, and I got many hours of enjoyment out of it. What I loved about it were the wide range of vehicles and the well-crafted terrain. Test Drive Off-Road 2 not only has a wide range of vehicles and well crafted terrain, but much, much more.

As is the case with Test Drive 5, Test Drive Off-Road 2's diversity of tracks really sets it apart from all other off-road games. You can race in Morocco, Hawaii, the Mojave Desert, Santa Cruz, Switzerland, and Wales. There are a total of twenty-one vehicles to choose from, including the Jeep Grand Cherokee and the Hummer. Also, the Hummer is exclusive to Test Drive Off-Road 2, so you won't find it in any other off-road game. Vehicles are selected via the Showroom. By gaining credits in the World Tour mode you can purchase better vehicles in the Showroom.

The two main play modes in Test Drive Off-Road 2 are the Single Race and World Tour modes. In Single Race mode, you can simply race using any of the cars you have available on any of the tracks you have available. World Tour mode is where you earn extra vehicles and tracks. World Tour mode is divided into five classes. They are Hummer, Safari, SUV, Truck, and Military. You earn points based on your finishing position, and every time you win a class you unlock a new track. After you have beaten every class a new class called Open Class will become selectable. In this class all of the vehicles can race. Once you've beaten the Open Class you've won the game.

The control in Test Drive Off-Road 2 is good, but it's a bit unresponsive. A little more sensitivity would've been nice, but the control is still very good. The soundtrack is a mix of various songs by Sevendust, Gravity Kills, and Fear Factory and it suits the game well. It's not bothersome like the Test Drive 5 soundtrack. All in all Test Drive Off-Road 2 is an excellent off-road game, and will give you many hours of gaming enjoyment. If you want to tackle some rugged terrain and have a lot of fun in the process, go out and get yourself a copy of Test Drive Off-Road 2.

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Copyright © 1998 Ian Johnston

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